Tubular Bells for Two at The Lowry Manchester Review
Tubular Bells for Two
The Lowry, Manchester
8 September 2015
Reviewed by Catherine Joyce
The Tubular Bells album by Mike Oldfield was released in 1973 and became a worldwide hit selling over 25 million copies and even now is often placed highly in lists of best albums of all time. It would have been amazing to see Mike Oldfield play but Australians Daniel Holdsworth and Aidan Roberts are certainly the next best thing and put on a pretty good show. They have been touring the world for a few years now, winning a Sydney Fringe Award for Best Musical Moment in the 2010 Festival, and they made their European debut at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2012, winning two awards. Wherever it goes it is followed by 5 star reviews so we knew we would have a good night out.
The Quays Theatre at the Lowry is a superb venue, small enough that you are close to the stage but big enough for a decent atmosphere. Like the other theatres at the Lowry, the seating is comfortable with plenty of legroom and all seats have a good view of the stage. The Lowry is very easy to get to as it is just off the M602 motorway and there is plenty of parking in the large multi storey car park next to the theatre. If you eat in one of the restaurants at The Lowry Centre next door you can park for free, otherwise it costs around £5.50.
With simple lighting and a plain black backdrop the duo let their music do the talking and simply walk on stage and begin to play. At first the music slowly builds with both musicians sitting at their keyboards with guitars but soon they’re both stretching for drums, cymbals and other instruments or rushing across the stage for a quick guitar change.
The second half (side 2) starts with a little chat as the two get in position and then continues as before. For me, the second half contained my favourite performance of the night – Daniel’s stint on the drum kit with kazoo, although both of them were great throughout.
The night ended with an encore that was perhaps a little more relaxed than the main piece and let their musical skills show clearly.
Altogether we enjoyed the night and would recommend the performance to any fans of the original album. For those who haven’t heard it before then perhaps this is the best way to find out what all the fuss was about 40 years ago? The audience last night certainly enjoyed it with a standing ovation at the end of the performance.
Rating: 4/5
For shows at The Lowry visit www.thelowry.com.
For more details abour Tubular Bells for Two and tour dates visit www.tubularbellsfortwo.com.
The Lowry, Pier 8, Salford Quays, Manchester, M50 3AZ | 0843 208 6000
